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Archive for the ‘Home Safety & Security Products’ Category

When you are going to have a child it is extremely important that you focus on baby home safety. This is also frequently referred to as childproofing your home. There are numerous techniques and products available for baby home safety that can be used for various reasons.

Baby safety has advanced a great deal over the years. It started with simply providing baby gates to keep a child out of or confined to an entire room. Now you can purchase individuals safety products to place within a room, so that you may allow the child to wonder free without getting into trouble.

One of the most common baby safety devices is outlet covers. These are small plastic pieces that can be used to place in each of the electrical outlets so that your child can not play with them, risking electrical shock. Also available are child safety locks for the cabinets. It used to be that parents only used these for the cabinets that have chemicals or cleaners in them, but now they are often used on all cupboards within reach of the child.

The options available for baby home safety devices seem to be endless. You should start with the basics such as the safety gates and outlet covers and then if necessary, look into others that may suite your child. If you have an extremely active and curious child, you can buy specific devices such as refrigerator locks or plastic door handles covers to prevent child entry. However, not all children are the same when it comes to causing nuisance and it is possible that you may not even need many of the baby home safety devices available.

Your home is where you should feel absolutely safe. It’s the one place you can let your guard down, and it’s where your most treasured possessions are. If you have children, your home becomes doubly important-it’s where you’re raising your family. Because of this, the last thing you want is to feel unsafe in your own home. There are a number of different products designed to promote safety at home. Some are aimed at families with young children, while others are a good idea to have no matter what.

Home security has always been around, but years ago, people didn’t feel they needed to secure their homes as much as they do today. Back then, it was safe to leave your home unlocked. Today, we often have two or three locks on each door, including a chain look and a deadbolt. Inside the home, young children used to be kept out of cabinets by simply putting a rubber band around the handles to hold them shut. While some precautions were taken to keep children away from dangerous items, parents didn’t always do everything they could to protect them. In today’s world, though, there are many different things we can purchase to protect ourselves, our children, and our homes.

One of the items that everyone should have and almost no one ever thinks of is an emergency weather radio. These radios tune in to emergency channels when tornadoes, hurricanes, or other natural disasters hit. They’ve been available for quite a while. The original weather radios were large, clunky things that ran on batteries. While today’s versions of these weather radios are streamlined, they still need batteries to operate. What happens if the batteries go bad or you forget to change them? You’re in a lot of trouble! However, an emergency weather alert radio with a hand crank actually solves this problem. All you have to do is crank the handle to generate power. In addition to hand crank emergency radios, you can also purchase a hand crank flashlight to help you get around your home if power goes out. These devices work well if you’re out camping, too.

If you’ve got small children at home, you know how important safety is. From the old plastic electrical outlet plugs that prevent kids from sticking objects into outlets to modern baby surveillance cameras, there are many different products out there for protecting babies and young children. A wireless baby monitor and camera has all but replaced the traditional baby monitor that only transmitted sounds. Wireless pan and tilt cameras and monitors are popular, too, since they allow you to turn the camera and see the entire nursery.

If you have a pool in your backyard, a swimming pool safety alarm is another indispensable safety product. Some will set off an alarm if motion is detected within the perimeter and others respond if someone enters the pool. You won’t have to worry about children climbing the fence and getting too close to what is a truly dangerous place for them to be.

If you’ve got a sliding door that leads out to your pool, you may be concerned about locking it. Often, it’s nice to open that door to let in some fresh air, but you don’t want to go off and leave it open. Consider the benefits that a sliding door and window lock with an adjustable bar offers. The the door or window can only open as far as you set it. This way, kids can’t push the door open and run out, and uninvited guests can’t easily get in.

A survival or first aid kit is also important to have. These kits come in a variety of different sizes and types. You can find survival kits for children, for one adult, for a family, or even for an office of ten or more. These kits include everything you’d ever need to survive for three or four days on your own. Most include water purification tablets, ration bars, an emergency radio and flashlight, and a survival blanket or sleeping bag. These kits are great to have around the house in case of a disaster or to take camping.

You can also look at motion sensitive lighting – especially small night lights to provide some illumination for you, your children and any overnight guests who might not be as familiar with the layout (and the obstacles) of your home. There are many, many more products available to help you make your home a little bit safer. Think about the different members in your family and what could harm them and then, take steps to make their home the safest place they’ll ever be in.

The home can be a dangerous place for seniors when it isn’t adequately prepared, as the elderly are more likely to trip and fall. Unfortunately, these injuries take longer to recover as people age. However, the home can be safety proofed and these simple precautions can make a huge difference in ensuring your loved one’s safety.

Bedrooms, the living room, and the dining room can all be safety proofed in a similar manner.

o Tape rugs and loose carpets to the ground. This prevents seniors from tripping on turned-up corners or scrunched rugs.
o Install railings that extend beyond the first and last steps on both sides of the staircase. Make sure the railing can hold a person’s entire body weight without breaking; a carpenter can check this for you and make any necessary adjustments.
o Cover sharp corners on tables and countertops. This will prevent seniors from getting cut if they do happen to fall.
o Secure electric cords to the wall or run them under rugs so no one trips.

Bathrooms need some specific work in order to be as safe as possible.

o Place no-slip rugs near the toilet, sink, and shower to help prevent falls.
o A raised toilet seat can help seniors sit down and get off the toilet seat with ease. Adding bars on both sides of the toilet is also beneficial.
o Installing a grab bar in the shower can provide valuable stability. A shower seat is also useful, especially if long showers are enjoyed.
o Shower doors that are made of glass should be labeled with bright tape or decals. This will prevent anyone from stepping through the door because it wasn’t seen.
o Label the hot water faucet or paint it red to avoid scalding.

The kitchen can be very dangerous if the proper precautions aren’t taken.

o All appliances must be in good working order. If they aren’t, it is time to buy new ones or hire a repairman.
o Make sure there is adequate lighting, especially around the cutting board.
o Be sure that the smoke detector has fresh batteries. If it is particularly old, you may want to purchase a new one.
o Place all appliances at waist height so seniors do not have to struggle to reach something that is placed particularly high or low.

Safety proofing the home is one of the most thoughtful things you can do for en elderly friend or family member; it is also essential. Grab a friend and you’ll be surprised by how much you can accomplish in an afternoon or two.

The US Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) is responsible for protecting the public “from unreasonable risks of serious injury or death” that could be caused by the thousands of different kinds of consumer products that are under this agency’s jurisdiction. They focus on protecting families and individuals from products that can be injurious to children, and products that could cause chemical, electrical, fire, or mechanical hazards.

Because of their efforts the rate of injuries and deaths that have been associated with consumer products has declined by thirty percent over the past thirty years.

Most recently, in March of 2010, because of their diligence, products from more than thirty companies were, for the most part, voluntarily recalled. Amongst them were companies that made:

- heated vests and jackets whose electrical connections could overheat and pose a burn hazard to people wearing them

- jackets and vests whose drawstrings could entangle and strangle young children

- power strips and extension cords with both inadequate coating material surrounding the copper cords and copper conductors which could pose a fire hazard

- vent-free fireplaces that might not ignite but could allow gas to escape, thus making a fire or explosion a real possibility in someone’s home

- gates that parents use to prevent their children from falling down a flight of stairs. The slats on these gates could detach or break, and could result in injury

- lids on educational kits designed for children that have excessive levels of lead in them which could cause health problems in young children who ingest them

- infant slings used to carry babies less than four months old because they could suffocate the children they are meant to carry

- painted wooden beads intended to be used by children in arts and crafts because the paint on the beads have excessive levels of lead

- faulty fireplace dampers that could cause carbon monoxide poisoning

- bicycle handlebar grips that could slid off when being used and cause the bike rider to fall and/or injury himself or herself

- internal loudspeaker components that could overheat and cause a fire

- paint on bicycle bells that violate the federal lead paint standard and contain excessive levels of lead

- candles which can flare up and whose glass containers could crack and cause burns and lacerations

- children’s high chairs that were made with screws and plastic brackets that could loosen and fall out or crack and cause the high chair to tip over

- and, unfortunately, much, much more

Because so many products are recalled every month you may want to periodically check on the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission website at cpsc dot com periodically to see if any products you use or that you’re thinking of buying have made their inauspicious list.

With so many items on their “buying a home” checklist, few homeowners take into consideration household safety, even though it should always be a top priority. While most people know that It is always advisable to take every precaution to ensure your well-being as well as that of your loved ones, somehow in all the hub-bub of moving and decorating their new home, they fail to include household safety items in their purchases.

One of the top dangers to your newly bought property and your household are fires. Each year, according to information in the federal fire safety website, more then a half a million winter fires cause $3 billion dollars in property loss, 1,900 deaths and 8,000 injuries. To protect your home and family place smoke detectors on every level of your home and in every bedroom. For additional protection they can be placed in hallways, stairways, attics, basements and garages. Check your detectors at least once a month and make sure their batteries are in working order. An estimated 20% of U.S. homes have smoke alarms present but none that are working. These devices are inexpensive and it could be a key factor in survival, as they facilitate early warning and the ability for a person to escape, should a fire occur.

In addition to smoke detectors, it’s recommended by home safety product manufacturers that you have one fire extinguisher for every 600 square feet of your home. Extinguishers can help you put out a small fire before it gets too large. Just make sure that your extinguishers have pressure gauges and check them at least once a month to ensure they are ready for use at all times.

Another form of danger is carbon monoxide poisoning. Very few homeowners realize that carbon monoxide is invisible and odorless, as well as poisonous and lethal. It is recommended that you put at least one carbon monoxide detector in your home to protect you and your family. There are often too many tragic news articles published during the winter each year where unsuspecting families decided to use outdoor barbeques to warm their homes.

Many times other potential dangers, such as burglary, are exacerbated by homeowners’ negligence to take simple safety precautions. When you are away from home always lock your doors and windows. If the expense is not a “budget” breaking financial item for your household, you can provide further protection from burglary by installing an alarm system in your home. Just as with smoke and carbon monoxide detectors, make sure you regularly check to see if your alarm system is functioning properly.

The following is a Home Safety Checklist of items to attend to when you first move in.

o Install new locks.

o Make extra sets of keys.

o Buy a fire extinguisher for the kitchen and garage.

o Install or check the batteries in the smoke detectors.

o Install or secure sturdy handrails.

o Service all heating equipment.

o Install carbon monoxide detectors.

o Use anti-skid material under area rugs.

o Install smoke detectors in key locations.

o Install an automatic night light outside bedrooms.

o Keep fire extinguishers handy in kitchen and garage.

o Keep medicines, poisons and firearms in child secured cabinets.

o Properly store paints, solvents and gasoline in a well-ventilated area.

o Provide rope or chain ladders on upper stories if there is no fire escape.

o Install ground fault circuit interrupters (GFCI) in bathrooms and by kitchen sink.

At risk of sounding like Smokey the Bear…don’t forget, household safety should always be a buyer’s top priority rather than at the bottom of your to-do list. You’ll be more than grateful in the event you find yourself or your loved ones in any danger!

Countless bathroom accidents occur every year. In fact, it has been reported that there are more accidents that happen in the bathroom than in any other room in a home. Seniors are especially at risk, so it is imperative that senior homecare includes bathroom safety products that will decrease their chances of being hurt. Bathroom accident prevention is the key to stopping accidents before they have a chance to occur. Installing home health safety products such as bath mats in bathtubs that are sturdy and slip resistant is one way of making sure your bathroom is safe for use. Cosmetic Solutions offers bathtub safety mats which features suction cups to help hold the mat in place to prevent slips and falls. In addition to safety mats, Medline offers a bathtub bar that locks to the sides of your tub to provide stability for getting in and out of the tub. This device supports up to 250 lbs. and has rubber pads to protect bath tub walls.

Medline also offers a bath bench that sits in your bathtub to make bathing a lot more comfortable. The bath bench has a durable aluminum frame, with suction cup tips on all four legs making it stable and safe for individuals who need to sit while bathing. The seat is adjustable up to 19.5 inches making it ideal for many different bathtubs.

For those who may need back support during bathing, Duro-Med’s White Blow Molded Bath Seat features anodized aluminum tubing, non-slip tips and back and seat rest blows with drainage holes made of high density plastic. The back support makes bathing a lot more comfortable and allows caretakers to easily assist loved ones in getting in and out of the bathtub.